The 15th annual Skip Barber Racing School Karting Scholarship Shootout will return to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca on Nov. 3-6, 2011. For an entry fee of $2,500, the next generation of racecar drivers will have the opportunity to compete for $135,200 in scholarships for the 2012 race season.

Observed by a panel of motorsports experts, 30 karters will be coached as they go through a series of tests both on and off the racetrack. The expert panel will evaluate each driver on their on-track performance as well as how they present themselves off track and effectively listen and apply feedback. Participants will also take part in seminars involving media training, driver product development and sponsorship. Competitors will also gain exposure from the event, with constant media coverage of the shootout.

Previously open to karters as well as entry-level racecar drivers, this event will now be exclusively for karters with no professional auto racing experience and no Skip Barber Racing School race event experience. For racers who are overqualified to participate in the Karting Scholarship Shootout, a separate shootout event, The Skip Barber Race Series Champion Shootout, will take place on the same weekend, aimed for participants in the Summer or Winter  Race Series. A separate announcement regarding this shootout will follow shortly.

By limiting the field to strictly karters, Skip Barber Racing School returns to the core commitment of providing scholarship opportunities for karters to advance through the levels of motorsport using the Skip Barber Racing School ladder and also the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development ladder. An integral part of the MAZDASPEED Motorsports Development ladder, Skip Barber Racing School allows racers to advance through the system of race schools and race series with the possibility of earning scholarships at the conclusion of each championship.

The winner of the Karting Scholarship Shootout will receive a scholarship to compete in the full 2012 Skip Barber Race Series of their choice. The other top nine drivers will receive scholarship funds to compete in 2012 Skip Barber Race Series events. At the end of the year, competitors of the Race Series will have the opportunity to participate in the Skip Barber Race Series Champion Shootout, with the grand prize being a scholarship to compete in the full 2013 USF2000 race season.

Karting Scholarship Shootout Awards:

1st place: Full 2012 Skip Barber Race Series Season
2nd place: $30,000 Race Series Scholarship
3rd place: $26,000 Race Series Scholarship
4th place: $20,000 Race Series Scholarship
5th place: $15,200 Race Series Scholarship
6th place: $10,000 Race Series Scholarship
7th place: $10,000 Race Series Scholarship
8th place: $8,000 Race Series Scholarship
9th place: $8,000 Race Series Scholarship
10th place: $8,000 Race Series Scholarship

Note: All scholarships funds are spread out over each race event throughout the course of the 2012 season, and cannot be applied to only a few select events.